A Day in the Life: Tall in the Saddle

One of the most recognizable voices in beef country has no plans to ride off into the sunset any time soon

Story By Sally Johnston

At 11 am, a cattle sale is already in full swing at the Innisfail Auction Market. Within the sprawling set of white and red buildings surrounded by animal pens, the call of cattle compete with the rapid-fire voices of the auctioneers. But the authoritative voice of Jack Daines, a co-owner of the family-run auction market, rings over all of it as he conducts meetings and issues commands, while also keeping stock of everything taking place on the site.

At 71, an age at which most people are enjoying the gentle canter of retirement, this livestock auctioneer and rodeo producer still barrels through each day with the vigour of a young bronc horse bucking out of the gate. In addition to his work at the Innisfail Auction Market, which his father started almost 52 years ago, Daines is a major organizer of the renowned Innisfail Professional Rodeo. He often works seven days a week.

This Wednesday is no different. Daines offers a meaty handshake, fixes me with his one good eye and announces in a gravely voice, “I’ve just bought a bull.” He lost his left eye in an accident with a steer more than 30 years ago, a lasting reminder of the dangers of working with cattle, whether on a farm, at market or in a rodeo.

We’ve barely started talking before the phone rings and he grabs the receiver. Although he has a friendly and competent staff of between 20 and 40 people depending on the size of the sale, it’s usually his raspy greeting that you’ll hear if you call the livestock market. He shuns voice mail. “I’m usually the one they want to talk to,” he says of the near-constant string of callers. “I can answer just about every question, so why bother having somebody else answer the phone? It’s the way I do business.”

That business amounts to the sale of 90,000 to 100,000 head of cattle a year in addition to horses and miscellaneous goods. Many of the ranchers who sell livestock at Innisfail travel quite a distance and appreciate Daines’ reputation for straight-talking and honesty.

His office resembles a 1970s den. The wood-panelled walls are covered in family photographs and some of the many awards that he’s received for his rodeo and auctioneering work. Near the old brown leather sofa there’s a small fridge balanced on top of a filing cabinet.

Dressed in a red denim shirt, black Wrangler jeans and a black western style hat, this burly grandfather of seven is a forceful presence, one of the most colourful characters in his field. He’s in his office most days, even weekends. He enjoys his stints at the microphone in the sales ring. He handles many details for the rodeo, securing big prize money from sponsors such as Budweiser and Wrangler for the contestants. In the off season, many rodeo contestants work the oil patch, and Daines can count on oil companies and suppliers as sponsors, too. The result? The Innisfail Professional Rodeo attracts the nation’s top cowboys and stock. Daines has no plans to pass his duties on to someone else any time soon. “Retirement is the furthest thought from my mind,” he says. “I like people and the cattle business so that’s why I keep doing what I do.”

He jumps up from his chair and heads towards the sales ring on the far side of the building. It’s time to take up the gavel and take a turn at selling some cattle that will either head to feedlots or to breeding herds. He knows many of the buyers on the benches. Occasionally he calls to them by name in a bid to coax a higher price for the animals that pace around the sawdust-covered floor. “How can you sit there and let them go by?” he says of two cows being herded into the ring. “Who’ll give me $730?”

Daines has been involved with livestock and rodeo his entire life. His grandfather emigrated from England in 1911 to operate a blacksmith shop, and his father became a farmer. In 1955, Daines’ father and three partners opened the Innisfail Auction Market.

Daines was 12 when he entered his first steer-riding event. He won the Canadian Novice Saddle Bronc title in 1956 and 1957 and then turned pro. (A bronc is a horse that hasn’t been broken in for riding.) Eventually the natural verbal exuberance that had landed him in announcement spots took him away from rodeo riding altogether. At 24, he gained his auctioneer’s licence, and he’s worked at the market since.

Daines rises around 7 am and eats breakfast with Audrey, his wife of 49 years. Then he checks the cattle on his ranch. Some of the herd belongs to his only son Duane, who lives on a nearby ranch.

A top saddle bronc rider, Duane suffered a spinal cord injury in 1995 and is now reliant on a wheelchair. He’s also an auctioneer, working alongside his dad and his cousin, Mark Daines. Duane enjoys working with his father, but says he’s learned to stay out of his way. “Dad likes to be on top of everything. I can talk to him straight where other guys might be intimidated,” he says.

Being a family enterprise has helped the Innisfail Auction Market survive the ups and downs of the cattle industry, believes Duane. “We lived through the BSE crisis and it was devastating. But people have dealt with my grandfather, my father and now me. To have lasted this long, we must we doing something right.”

Bill Snyder, a livestock broker from Carstairs who has been coming to the Innisfail Auction Market for 40 years, agrees. “Jack’s very personable and an excellent entrepreneur. He’s an old-style country auctioneer. He’s always optimistic. The cattle industry has been through some tough times but he always sees the sun shining.”

Daines encourages city folks to enjoy a day out in the countryside by taking in the entertainment of The Innisfail Professional Rodeo, which this year will see star cowboys competing for about $250,000 in prizes. “This is a world-class rodeo. All of the cowboys that enter the Canadian Finals Rodeo in Edmonton and the Calgary Stampede are entered in our rodeo. But it takes place in a field on our ranch so you can get up real close,” he promises. “Spectators can sit out there and enjoy a cold drink and watch the horses buck. It’s a day away from all your problems and a totally different world to the one you’d normally live in.”

While rural folks appreciate rodeo for the riding and roping, city people get caught up in the thrill and danger of the events. “You hope that nobody gets injured or killed but it is dangerous enough and you know that it could happen,” says Daines. He glances at the wall where there’s a faded photograph of Duane riding a bucking bronc at the height of his 17-year rodeo career. Duane was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. He qualified for the National Finals Rodeo nine times and the Canadian Finals Rodeo 13 times, also winning major prizes at U.S. rodeos. He was the first Canadian to win the $50,000 saddle bronc championship at the Calgary Stampede. It all ended on September 10, 1995, in Armstrong, B.C. He was in the bucking chute, about to signal the gate open with a nod, when the horse reared, crushing Duane against the back wall. It broke his back and paralyzed him for life. His wife, Cheryl, was in the stands at the time.

But there are no pity parties in the Daines family.

“You can’t sit around and say "poor me." I had good family support,” Duane says, referring to the sprawling Daines clan in Alberta (including his grown daughters Jennifer and Bailey). “I have no regrets about riding rodeo.”

Rodeo is still important to the family. Duane’s wife Cheryl is one of Canada’s top women barrel racers, and their 11-year-old daughter Sydney is fast following in her footsteps.

It’s now late in the day at the Innisfail Auction Market. The sale is finished and most of the cattlemen have drifted away. But Daines is still busy. He emerges from a small room adjoining his office where he’s been chatting to a farmer from the Edmonton area. “That customer wants me to sell his herd of 500 head in November.”

For the umpteenth time today, he’s interrupted by the ringing phone. It’s time for him to tape the daily commercials that air on several radio stations across Alberta. Equipped only with a stopwatch, Daines delivers two impromptu market updates: one 30 seconds and the other 60 seconds long. It’s another thing ticked off his long to-do list.

It’s 6 pm before Daines heads home for dinner with Audrey. “She gets a bit tired of all the rodeo talk sometimes,” he  admits. “My father once said, “Can’t we have just one meal without talking about rodeo?’ But we’re a rodeo family. It’s our way of life. That’s the way it will always be.”

And as Daines reflects on the best and worst days of his life, it’s clear he wouldn’t have it any other way. “There’ve been down times, when my nephew lost his life falling from a rail car, when Duane was paralyzed, when I lost my eye. You just accept those things,” he says. “I am a Christian, and although I am not a great attender of church, I do believe in it all. Heaven is right here in Alberta for me. It doesn’t get any better than this.” 

Take me out to the rodeo

The Innisfail Professional Rodeo takes place from June 13 to 17 on the Daines ranch, six kilometres north of Innisfail (about 200 kilometres south of Edmonton). There’s free camping. Admission is $15 for adults; $10 for students and children under 10 are free. Tickets include admission to the rodeo dance. Visit www.innisfailauctionmarket.com/rodeo.htm for more information and a schedule of events.

More rodeos around the province

Every year Alberta is host to dozens of rodeos, rural fairs and exhibitions. They range from the large-scale Calgary Exhibition and Stampede and Edmonton’s Canadian Finals Rodeo to small-town and community events.

Some offer amateur cowboys the chance to test their skills, others are for professionals. There are special- rodeos for teenagers, for girls and even for seniors. (One even hosts a running of the bulls.)

For listings covering events available across the province, visit Alberta Agri-culture’s website at www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/general/fairexhs.nsf or www.growingalberta.com.

See also:

More Rodeos Around the Province